Just my thoughts of the day.

Do you have a situation or a need you’ve prayed and prayed for God to fix, but days, months, even years have gone by and your miracle still hasn’t come? When this happens it’s easy to start thinking it might be too late, but you keep on praying and making excuses why it hasn’t happened, holding on to the slightest sliver of hope that maybe it still could.

While I was studying the passage in John 5:1-9a, 14 about the miracle Jesus did for the man at the Pool of Bethesda, I saw some things that have given me a fresh hope for my miracle.

Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches waiting for a certain movement of the water, for an angel of the Lord came from time to time and stirred up the water. And the first person to step in after the water was stirred was healed of whatever disease he had. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” John 5:3-6

Even in a crowd of people, Jesus still sees me individually. I’m not lost in the multitude of other’s needs.

There is no statute of limitations on God working a miracle in my situation. Just because He hasn’t, doesn’t mean He won’t.

God won’t automatically meet a need He knows I have until He shows me what it is, and I’m ready and willing for Him to do something. I have to know what I need and want to change.

“I can’t sir,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me.” Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” Instantly the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! John 5:7-9a

I can make excuses for why my situation hasn’t changed, but that isn’t what God wants from me. My excuses could keep me from getting my miracle.

My idea of how my situation can or will change isn’t necessarily how God is going to do it. God doesn’t need a formula.

I can’t rely on someone else to get it done for me—someone else’s prayer, someone else’s faith. Others can come along side me and join with me in prayer and faith, but ultimately I’m responsible for seeking, praying, and believing. It’s my faith and my relationship with Jesus that are key.

I must be obedient when Jesus tells me what to do in my situation. When Jesus gives me a command He will give me the ability to get it done, so just do it.

But this miracle happened on the Sabbath, so the Jewish leaders objected. John 5:9b

Not everyone will be happy with my healing or the way God met my need. Rejoice and don’t worry about other’s agendas.

But afterward Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.” John 5:14

When my healing comes and this situation is fixed, it can reveal hidden things that also need to change. When God reveals what I need to change, it’s in my best interest to do it.

I believe miracles still happen and healing still comes for all the various needs we have – physical, mental, emotional, relational, etc. My desire is that the hope God has given me through these insights will also bring renewed hope to you in your situations.

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Luke 6:27a ~ “But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies!

I was just walking toward the kitchen as my husband walked past me and quickly said, “Don’t worry, I have already asked her to clean it all up.” Then he promptly left the house for work.

I hesitantly walked around the corner and came face to face with my teenage daughter using her feet on two dish towels swiping away at the floor. When she saw the look on my face she said, “Mom, you should be glad that I already cleaned up a lot of it. It was really messy earlier. Great! I thought as I surveyed the flour and powdered sugar dusted counters, the sink and counter full of dishes, and the little drifts of powdered sugar clinging to two of the cabinet doors.

I was already frustratedirritated, okay let’s be really honest, I was angry with her over two other incidents in the last couple of days. So last night when she just had to bake these cookies for the school project – at 10:30 p.m. – I went to bed.

After cleaning the kitchen (grudgingly because the bus doesn’t wait, and let’s face it, her cleaning methods were just making a bigger mess at the moment), but having her make her own lunch because I was taking care of her mess, I sat down to have a little quiet time with the Lord hoping for a new perspective on things. He never disappoints.

I was reading the verse that practically screamed off the page at me, “But to you who are willing to listen…” Well, of course, I listen. Those who don’t would be the unbelievers or those who pick and choose what they want out of the Bible, right? I felt the Holy Spirit nudge at my heart and ask, “Are you sure it isn’t talking about you?”

Okay, Lord, show me what you want me to see. He said, “Well, now that you are willing to LISTEN, I’d be happy to show you. Just keep reading.” As I read about how I am to love, be good to, bless, and pray for my enemies, I realized I wasn’t even doing that for my family so how could I possibly do it for my enemies. Oh no! I was a selective listener.

Of course I love my family, I do good for them, I bless them, and I certainly pray for them. I justified the situation; after all, I was just a little mad at the moment. But wait, this passage doesn’t stop at those. Oh goodness, there is more! What about turning the other cheek, offering my shirt when my coat has been demanded of me, and giving freely without asking for anything in return? Surely this isn’t talking about my situation because I’m dealing with my child, not enemies.

Hmmm, let’s see. The end of verse 35 says that if I do all of these things I will truly be acting as a child of the Most High, for He is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. Then in verse 36 Jesus says, “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.”

I know sometimes I have to chastise and discipline my children, and it is clear in God’s word that He does that to us, His children, because He loves us. But, He is also compassionate toward us, and sometimes just makes sure we are listening and then teaches us the right things to do.

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The mountain waits for me to begin my climb. The road leads in, but I can’t see where it goes. Does it end somewhere in there among the trees and boulders that block my view? How treacherous is it?

The mountain is beautiful from here. Untouched by my presence. I can imagine all kinds of things from ground level.

Only taking a step onto that unknown ground will give me an accurate understanding of the road that lies before me. I can’t see my next step until I take this one.

Here I go.

One hesitant step at a time.

Lord, you’ve promised to be a lamp to my feet, a light to my path. Let me have eyes to see the light you are shining right at my toes.

Help me stop trying to stare into the distance, squinting through the darkness trying to discern the path ahead. Is that a bear or just a rock in the shadows? It’s hard to tell in the darkness of the trees that block my way.

Oh yes, the light, the light I’m supposed to be using is here, here at my feet illuminating the rocks and the dip in the road. I could easily dismiss them as unimportant. These aren’t so big. I could have traversed them all on my own.

But isn’t it the little things that trip us up; cause us to stumble and scrape our hands and knees? It’s the little dips in the road we don’t see that catch our toe and throw us down.

I can’t be looking ahead to the big things – they won’t be missed when I come upon them. I must keep to the road at my feet, letting the light from the lamp of the Lord shine on those things I need to keep my eye on.

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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ~ John 1:1The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. ~ John 1:14a

Everyone knows that Joseph was Jesus’ earthly father, but he has always seemed to me to be this character in the background, kind of just along for the ride in the whole story. That really couldn’t be further from the truth. Joseph was a major player in this redemptive plan.

There may not be much written about him, but the things that are point to someone who was just as carefully chosen to be Jesus’ parent as Mary was. In my last blog post – She Believed, I talked about some reasons why I thought God chose Mary for this assignment… she knew God’s word, she believed it already, and when the angel spoke to her, she believed him.

If we take a look at Joseph’s part in the story, we will see that while Mary believed, Joseph obeyed.

So why was it so important for Joseph to be an obedient man? Mary just had to believe what the angel told her, and then the Holy Spirit overshadowed her and she became pregnant. Joseph, on the other hand, not only had to believe what the angel would tell him in his dreams, but he would have to take action.

It was just as important for Jesus to have an earthly father as it was for him to have an earthly mother. In that day, a woman couldn’t survive without a husband. Mary would need a good man to provide for her and her baby as well as keep her safe in very perilous circumstances.

In comes Joseph.

In Matthew 1:19 we see that Joseph is a good man. We also see that he is kind because he doesn’t want to disgrace Mary publicly, but plans to break off their engagement quietly. The law actually gave him the right to have her stoned. Whew! Thankfully he was good and kind.

But, in the midst of his own thoughts on divorcing her quietly, an angel appears to him in a dream and tells him to go ahead and take Mary for his wife because she is telling the truth, and to name this child Jesus. Then it says that when he woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary for his wife, and that he named the child Jesus. Did you see that? He did it when he woke up. He didn’t wait around; immediate obedience.

Matthew 1:22-23 – All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through His prophet:“Look! The virgin will conceive a child! And they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”

This isn’t the end of it, though. In Matthew 2:13-14 it says that an angel appears to Joseph again in a dream after the wise men have left, and tells him to get up, flee to Egypt with Jesus and Mary, and to stay there until he is told to return. He leaves that night with Mary and the baby. Again, immediate obedience.

Matthew 2:15 – …This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”

A third time the angel comes to him in a dream and tells him that he can go back because those who are trying to kill Jesus are now dead. So, he gets up and heads back to Israel. When he’s afraid to head back into Judea, he’s warned in a dream and leaves for the region of Galilee.

Matthew 2:23 – So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

That is a man of action! He doesn’t hang around, he doesn’t discuss it with anybody, he just gets up and does what he is commanded to do with no arguments. It couldn’t have been easy leaving everything behind each time and heading to unknown places with no family or friends.

Every time Joseph was obedient he took part in fulfilling God’s plan of redemption through His son, Jesus. Yes, he was definitely a major player in this story and not a background character.

We’ve seen that Joseph was a good man, a kind man, and a man of action through obedience. He was dedicated to protecting Mary and Jesus. He’s not mentioned in the great hall of fame of faith filled men in Hebrews, but I have to believe that he is part of the great cloud of witnesses that are surrounding us.

His witness of obedience still echoes through time.

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As I thought about the coming Advent season this morning, I decided to read the story of Jesus’ birth to begin to prepare my heart. It always amazes me how the Lord can show me new things in a story I’ve read or heard multiple times. Today He amazed me once again.

Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you! ~ Luke 1:28

Mary was favored. Why? What was it about her that caught God’s attention? Why did He choose her to be the mother of His son? Did she do something special or did He just pick her out of a group of girls her age who were descendants of David?

I read on. I found some clues to why I think God chose Mary.

The angel of the Lord visited her and told her that she would conceive a son, name him Jesus, he would be great, would be called the Son of the Most High, be given the throne of David, and would reign over Israel forever. Wow, pretty incredible stuff! She didn’t ask about all of that, she just wanted to know how it would happen; not all the great stuff, but how was it physically going to happen to her? She was a virgin. It was almost like she was saying, “What will I have to do to conceive this baby? How will it happen?”

Once she was told, she agreed, even though the ramifications to her could have been devastating. She would be pregnant and not married. Her fiancé, Joseph, would know it wasn’t his. Would anyone believe her story? She could have been stoned for adultery, but she still said yes. Why?

I think the answer comes in the next few verses.

One thing Elizabeth says to her jumped out at me.

You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.” ~ Luke 1:45 NLT

This is happening to her because she believes that the Lord does what He says, but this verse doesn’t say “will” do, it says “would” do. It doesn’t mean that she believes that the Lord will do what the angel said He would do. The next verses in the beautiful Magnificat reveal the deeper belief Mary had.

Luke 1:46 – 55 ~ Mary responded,

“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me.
He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him.
His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands.
He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful.
For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.”

There it is right there! Mary knew the covenant promises of God and she already believed they would come to pass. She didn’t just know them, she believed them. Her praises are filled with references to the Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets.

Mary wasn’t just another Israelite girl who was the right age and of the right lineage. She was a girl who had her heart filled with the Word of God! So when God called on her to be the vessel to bring His son into the world, she was ready and willing.

Another key to how Mary continued in her calling, even through the challenges it would bring, came in another part of the story.

After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished,but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. ~ Luke 2:17 – 20

Mary kept her heart and mind on the right things; the things God was doing, the promises He had made. She could see them being fulfilled right before her eyes because she was watching. She was highly favored and chosen because she believed that the Lord would do what He said, and she was willing to put action to her belief.

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“I’m not supposed to……,” means my son with autism has done exactly what he is telling me he’s not supposed to do. What he’s really saying is, “Oops, I’ve messed up again. Will you forgive me? Please help me.”

You see, he can’t seem to help himself. He knows the rules, he can say the rules, he’s a stickler for others following the rules, but in the moment, he breaks the rules. We have to help him. We set up boundaries, we put things in place that stop him when he can’t stop himself, and we exact consequences when needed.

The other day when he had come to me for what seemed like the 50th time that day, I exasperatedly called out to the Lord asking why my child can’t obey the rules. I know he isn’t trying to rebel. He really does want to be obedient, but once again he isn’t.

Before I could get all of that out, I got a picture of the Lord in my mind with a twinkle in His eye and a chuckle in His response, “Hmmmm, I don’t know, Debbie, why would a child who knows the rule break it?” Then scriptures about jealously, gossip, and anger danced before me. “Could it be a desire to please self outweighs the desire to be obedient in that moment?”

Ouch! I had the distinct impression we weren’t talking about my son anymore, but about my “I’m not supposed to’s.” How many times have I messed up, done exactly what I know I shouldn’t, but in the moment I just can’t seem to help myself.

Maybe my son knows something I don’t. The minute he realizes he has been disobedient, he doesn’t run away from me, he runs to me; the rule maker, the one who can forgive him and help him find ways to avoid his lack of restraint.

So, I take a cue from my son and turn my heart to the Lord, “Father, I’m not supposed to…., will You forgive me, will you help me?”

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But when you pray, go into your [most] private room, and, closing the door, pray to your Father, Who is in secret; and your Father, Who sees in secret, will reward you in the open. ~ Matthew 6:6 Amplified Bible (AMP)

One version calls it a closet. My closet? I wouldn’t even invite my best friend into my closet, at least not until I’ve cleaned it up. At any given time there are muddy shoes, dirty clothes, suitcases, and lots of stuff that doesn’t belong in there, along with all my clothes. Definitely not a place I would want to entertain the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.

But that’s the point, right? Our prayer time isn’t supposed to be to entertain the Lord, it’s to allow him into our deepest most intimate space – the closet of our soul. He doesn’t want us to only show Him the cleaned up areas of our life; the places we only show company. He wants to come into the space where all our secrets are kept hidden away, where all the clutter and dirt can begin to hinder us from who we really want to present to the world outside.

The closet of our souls can look a lot like the typical closet; old baggage filled with hurts, pains, and unforgiveness, muddy shoes where we’ve veered off the clean path He’s laid before us, dirty clothes in the form of a sin stained heart and mind in desperate need of washing, and all the stuff – the cares of the world piling high, blocking what we really need to access.

Yes, He wants to meet us in the closet of our hearts and do some cleaning only He can do. Our baggage will be replaced with restoration, healing, and forgiveness. Muddy shoes will be cleaned and ready for the path ahead. The sin stained heart and mind will be washed as white as snow, and all the stuff that blocks our vision and keeps us from the blessings waiting for us will be stripped away.

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1 Samuel 17:48 ~ As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him.

The armies faced off, each on their own hill. The battlefield yawned between them in the valley below. A giant of a man stepped into the valley and began his taunt, striking fear and dismay into the hearts of the men he was calling to battle.

As I face a “giant” of my own I cry out, how do I slay this thing? What do I do? How do I take it down? The giant is so big and no others seem to know how to slay it either, so I go to the one place I know I can get my answers. I search the story of a young teenage boy who ran quickly toward the battle line to meet and slay his giant.

In the midst of this ancient story I find some precious smooth stones I can use to slay my giant. Keys to having different eyes for the battle that lies before me. David saw things differently than his Israelite kin, and this view made the difference between standing scared on the hill and racing head on to engage the enemy; a foe that to the physical eye looked unbeatable, but to the spiritual eye was nothing more than bird food.

He saw the enemy for who he really was.

The Israelite army saw the giant, Goliath, as a man; bigger, stronger, and having mighty armor and weapons – unbeatable.

David saw him as an uncircumcised Philistine who dared to defy the armies of the Living God.

An uncircumcised Philistine meant that Goliath wasn’t under the protection and sovereignty of the Living God, and by coming against God’s people, he had made himself an enemy of their God.

Smooth Stone: I see ~ I am a child of the Living God, and when the enemy engages me he engages Him.

He understood who was fighting the battle.

Goliath stood and shouted day after day asking them why they would come out and line up for battle because he was a Philistine and they were servants of Saul. They were to choose a man from among them to be their champion to fight and kill him. The Israelites saw themselves as mere men in the face of this great and mighty enemy. How could any of them be a champion against this giant?

David understood that God himself was their champion. This uncircumcised Philistine had no chance against their great and mighty deliverer.

Smooth Stone: I understand ~ Jesus is my champion. According to Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” There is nothing that can defeat Him.

He kept his eye for the battle.

David’s older brother tried to remind him that he was just a boy, an insignificant shepherd with a few sheep in the desert. He accused him of having wrong motives and only wanting to watch others do battle.

Saul, the king of Israel, tried to remind him again that he was just a boy and the enemy was well versed and experienced in battle.

Although David’s brother and King Saul were older, had more experience, and were in a greater position than he was they didn’t know what he knew. They didn’t see what he saw.

David had fought and killed lions and bears. He may not have been experienced with this particular foe, but he was not inexperienced. He had faced battles before and won.

Smooth Stone: I remember ~ I have been here before. I have fought other battles with great odds and won, not by my might or power, but by the power of the Lord. Even if I hadn’t, He has won the ultimate victory, so I’m covered.

He engaged because this fight was not just a battle, it was a cause.

In 1 Samuel 45 – 47, David’s statement to the Philistine shows exactly how he sees the battle:

“You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s and he will give you into our hand.”

David ran to the battle line because he saw through spiritual eyes the heart of God to fight for His people and proclaim His name in all the earth as well as to remind His people that the Lord saves, but not with the weapons of mere men.

Smooth Stone: I engage ~ I can run to the battle line because this battle isn’t just my own. I fight for a greater cause than just taking down my giant. I come to the battle in the name of Jesus, my salvation and my deliverer, to proclaim His name in all the earth, and remind my fellow Saints that the Lord saves, but not with earthly weapons.

The battlefield stretches before me. I pick up my five smooth stones; I see, I understand, I keep my eye, I remember, and I engage. My pace quickens, my foot steps sure, and my eye is on Jesus.

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When Mary said to the angel, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true,” do you think she knew the stretching of her faith it would cause? When Joseph believed the angel and took Mary for his wife, did he know? Did they know the hardships they would face on the way to God’s glorious plan being fulfilled?

You would think that such a powerful promise from God that started out with angels bringing the news would have meant easy street, right? I mean, come on, she’s carrying a baby conceived by the Holy Spirit. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. He’ll reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end! That surely means there will be no trouble ahead.

Wrong. Everyone else wasn’t in on the plan. I’m sure there was talk around town, and probably some finger pointing. Then, when the baby is about to be born they have to travel a long distance to Bethlehem. Of course they should have a nice room with a comfy bed. No, the doors are all closed to them. A dirty manger with stinky animals is all they have.

God are you there? Surely you didn’t plan this? Are you mad at us? Did we do something wrong? Maybe we didn’t hear you right? Were those the questions they were asking or did they know?

Haven’t you felt that way before? You’ve gotten a promise from God, probably not delivered by an angel, but a real sense that God was bringing you something or leading you somewhere. You happily received that promise, and then somewhere down the road everything seemed to fall apart. Nothing happened or it did, but now it is all messed up.

Did they know that all of those things were part of the plan. Maybe they didn’t know that what seemed like a promise gone wrong was actually going to be a big deal in retelling their story. Maybe those times when we think God has left us and things are darkest are going to be the big deal in the retelling of our great faith story.

Of course, we know that God was right there with them orchestrating everything. We know the birth, the death, the resurrection. God knew it all as it was being lived out day by day. He knows our story, too, from beginning to end. Those dark times are in His hands as much as all the wonderful times.

Don’t we know that if Mary and Joseph had to walk out their faith day by day we will too? One small sentence in the story told in Luke 2:18 says, “All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.” Did she think back to when the angel told her, “Nothing is impossible with God”? A whole host of angels proclaiming the news of the child and shepherds coming to worship Him? God’s promise was being revealed right before her eyes.

Maybe that is the key for us. As we celebrate this wonderful season of Christ’s birth, let us keep these things in our hearts and think about them often. God is fulfilling His plan in each one of us. It usually doesn’t go the way we think it should, but that doesn’t mean it’s not in His plan.

If you don’t believe me, just look at some other stories – David; annointed king and then running for his life for 15 years. Joseph; dreams of greatness, then is sold into slavery and imprisoned. Don’t let the dark times make you waiver in your faith or think your faith is wasted.

Did they know? Do we know? Either way, God is always faithful. We can put our total faith in the fact that God knows the story from beginning to end.

Reposted from December 2012

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I said goodbye to my daddy this past week. As I sat by his bedside and his last hours grew near, my first thoughts were, “Lord, I had hoped we would get through Christmas.” But as the hours ticked away, and my mother and sisters and I sang hymns to him, read scripture passages, and prayed, a different feeling filled my heart.

I know why I celebrate Christmas; the birth of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, but there is that part of me that thinks Christmas should be happy and cheerful, pretty and fun, and family and friends getting together to celebrate. It’s Jesus’ birthday!

Losing my daddy this time of year brought an unexpected understanding that deepens my joy of the true reason I celebrate Christmas.

Psalm 23 was one of my daddy’s favorites. This past week as we read it over him many times, each time I read, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me,” I was aware that we all walk through that valley; we will all face death one day. Our journey here on earth will be done, and then what? Because of the baby Jesus lying in a manger, we can face that day with great joy and rejoicing if we’ve accepted and received His free gift of salvation by believing and placing our faith in Him. If we’ve opened our eyes to see that He isn’t just a sweet story about a tiny baby and nothing more.

That baby was the physical manifestation of the promises throughout the Old Testament; the prophecies of a savior. Salvation came to earth that day in the body of a baby boy, but that baby would grow to be a man, die on a cross, and rise from the dead so that we might have eternal life. That day marked, in our physical realm, the beginning of God’s plan of redemption being fulfilled.

He is so much more! Simeon in Luke 2:28-32 saw that in the tiny baby he held – Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.

My heart is saddened that I’ll no longer be able to see my daddy here on earth, but because of the baby Jesus the angels proclaimed, the shepherds came to see, the Wisemen traveled so far to worship; the Savior of the World, my heart rejoices because I know I will see him on the other side of the veil in the presence of our Savior.

Isaiah 9:1a – Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress.

Isaiah 9:2 – The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.

Isaiah 9:6-7 – For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

Christmas has not been overshadowed by this loss because I understand that my daddy is finally truly home for Christmas. He is seeing with his eyes what we can only get a glimpse of in our hearts.

Thank you Lord Jesus, Light of the World. May those walking in darkness turn and come into your glorious light, may they come to know the joy and peace you so freely give.

Psalm 23:6 – Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.